PU hostels see pre-poll exodus

Today’s heavy downpour further dampened the election spirits. While more than 50 per cent of hostel residents,be it boys or girls,had returned home for the weekend without casting their vote,there were no signs of elections on the entire campus,including the organisation tents that had nothing else but loosely hanging banners,torn posters and empty chairs.

Witnessing such a situation and scared by a plummeting voter turnout this year,‘loyal’ party supporters were deputed to stop further exodus of students from hostels.

The voter percentage will certainly decline from the average 55 per cent maintained over the last few year.

Also,desperate phone calls and Short Messaging Services (SMSes) are continuously being sent to students requesting them to return and use their democratic right.

“Please,do not go home. Attend the elections and caste your vote; it is your democratic right,” one of the organisation’s supporters was seen pleading to the residents at girls’ hostel number 4 while the residents were making their entries in the ‘home going register’. These two supporters had settled at the main entrance gate of the hostel,doing the job right from the morning and had no plans to leave the place anytime soon.

“This year the situation is very bad,much worse than last year. The leave register is almost full with entries made by girls leaving the hostel since Tuesday. All will return on September 5 now. Last year too many students left for their native places which damaged our hold on the hostel,adversely affecting the group’s position,” said Harleen Kaur,a law student while showing the leave register.

She herself is a resident of hostel number 4 and claimed to be supporting the group for the last four years.

Similar information was shared by the hostel mess and canteen contractors. “Not even 50 per cent of the hostel strength is present today.

Out of around 450 residents,hardly 200 have stayed back. They would continue till Monday evening while the entire strength will regain on Tuesday morning when the University will resume after a long weekend,” said the mess contractor of hostel number 5.

Not only the female hostel residents were eager to enjoy the extended weekend and spend time with their family and friends over the University elections,the residents at the boys’ hostels too had plans for the weekend other than the elections.

While most of them left for home,others left for vacations with their friends.